Minister Grabar-Kitarović at 5th meeting of US-Adriatic Charter foreign ministers

Minister Grabar-Kitarović and other US-Adriatic Charter foreign ministers met today at the State Department at a meeting led by Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns, discussing the NATO processes, the future of the region, and the reform processes in the South East Europe. The ministers were received and greeted by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.

The meeting of the US-Adriatic Charter Partnership Commission, along with the exchange of experiences in political, economic, and defence reform, discussed the Charter’s signatories’ individual achievements in approaching NATO through its main mechanism – the Membership Action Plan cycles (MAP). Minister Grabar-Kitarović stated Croatia’s expectations in receiving the NATO invitation as soon as possible, based on individual achievements, of which a clear signal is expected at the NATO summit in Riga in November this year.

As a part of the meeting, a working briefing was held between Croatia, Albania, and Macedonia, with the presentations of the achievements so far, future co-operation, and the medical team’s experience from Afghanistan and other locations, with the presence of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Volker.

Minister Grabar-Kitarović met today with Stephen Hadley, President Bush’s National Security Adviser, J. D. Crouch, Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Adviser, and Judy Ansley, Senior Director for Europe at the National Security Council. The topics, apart from the bilateral issues, dealt with the results of the reform processes in SEE and joining the Euro-Atlantic integration, as well as with the importance of maintaining the stability in the region, in the light of the status issues whose solution is expected during this year.